AmeriCorps~ Vol. 1

The first soundtrack representing my year in Los Angeles, 2002/03.

TICKET OUT OF KANSAS by Jenny Simpson. Yeah, that's not a typo. A random Simpson singer who never made a name for herself, but I discovered this song right before I moved to LA. It was my Kansas Exit Anthem. It kicks off Volume One.
NO SUCH THING by John Mayer. This was a big song all over the radio, and my core of the Corps still laugh this day about a certain redhead's obsession: "ohmygod I love JohnMayer!"
DILEMMA by Kelly Rowland feat. Nelly. The dreaded "Boo" song. This song was EVERYWHERE Susan, my co-worker, and I went- on our radio in Van Nuys, on the radio in the billboard (our van), on the speakers of a random car in a random parking lot. This song would send us screaming, and now it makes me laugh.
LIKE I LOVE YOU by Justin Timberlake. Justin said *bye bye bye* to*NSYNC and went solo.
SLAVE 4 U by Britney Spears. This song came out well before I moved to LA, but this is the song that played our first night out on Hollywood Boulevard and sent me to the dance floor to bust out my Britney moves.
BARENAKED by Jennifer Love Hewitt. I know, not many people know she sings. I don't know if this song was really a big hit, but it was played on KIIS FM a lot. Thank you, Ryan Seacrest.
HELP ME by Nick Carter. NICK! My original celebrity boyfriend!! On a break from the Boys of Backstreet, Nick released his solo album, Now or Never. I bought this disc in Santa Monica on the Promenade.
JENNY FROM THE BLOCK by Jennifer Lopez. Lovin me some J. Lo. People are often fooled by the rocks that I got, too. I get it. J. Tay relates. Plus, my mama sent me this album, This Is Me... Then, in the mail as a Christmas gift.
A MOMENT LIKE THIS by Kelly Clarkson. Because I was obsessed with American Idol from the very beginning. I even took my VCR to Maryland for our training and would record the show in the boys lounge for us all to watch after a late class. Also, the night Kelly was crowned the Original Idol, I moved into my Hollywood apartment where I lived... for 12 hours. That terrible night almost sent me back to Kansas, but I stayed. Thank God for Sarah & Deidre.
I'M GONNA GETCHA GOOD! by Shania Twain. Shania's comeback single after a five year break. This kicked off her UP! album, which I bought in Van Nuys on my way to work. I also saw the video for the first time while on Disaster Relief in Louisiana.
THROUGH THE RAIN by Mariah Carey. This was well before Mimi was Emancipated. Just before my LA move was Mariah's notorious meltdown, when the world turned on her. That's when I took her under my wing and started loving her. I still have yet to watch all of GLITTER, but I like to pretend it's my favorite movie. Also, this was a gift in the mail from my mama.
LIFE GOES ON by LeAnn Rimes. The first single from her pop detour album, TWISTED ANGEL. That entire album makes me think of LA and my friends. I remember, also in Louisiana, screaming in a hotel lobby when I heard LeAnn singing this live on Regis & Kelly.
PICTURE by Kid Rock & Sheryl Crow. Another song discovered on DR in Louisiana. Toni and Mary-Curtis (my LA anchors) were obsessed, and soon I was, too.
LANDSLIDE by Dixie Chicks. Even though MC referred to this song as Avalanche, it was yet another DR fave. I remember listening to the cd in the Malibu rental car while Toni plowed her way through a swampy marsh.
CRY by Faith Hill. Wow, Volume One is a Louisiana dedication. Faith's album CRY was released while we were on the bayou, I bought it on a day off. The very same night Faith performed this on Saturday Night Live, Toni, MC and I pulled off The Great Faith Hill Cry Heist of 2002 at the local Wal-Mart. (We stole the giant cardboard poster at the entrance.) I remember MC having to bring Faith as a carry-on on the plane coming home.
DIRRTY by Christina Aguilera. Who can forget the year the genie left the bottle and never looked back??
COME TO MY WINDOW by Kimberly Caldwell. My favorite person on IDOL Season Two. I was on DR in Mississippi when she got the axe, so I high-tailed it to Applebee's and took a shot of Southern Comfort in her name.
DEVIL IN DISGUISE by LeAnn Rimes w/ Chris Isaak. This is a live performance. I got to attend a taping of the special ELVIS LIVES. At the taping LeAnn and Chris performed this number about ten times. During a break, I was able to show LeAnn the tattoo I have of her name on my lower back. The special aired on Thanksgiving night when I was home in Kansas, and I can briefly be seen clapping along in the audience a few times.
WHERE WOULD YOU BE by Martina McBride. The Lesly Kay Anthem. One of my best friends in Kansas would call me, belting this song on a ten minute voicemail. This is the song that couldn't prepare the Corps for the arrival of Lesly Kay.